Mindfulness, Anger, and Interpersonal Relationships in Nursing Students: A Descriptive Correlational Study
Eda Mert, Fatma Demirkıran
Mediterranean Nursing and Midwifery October 21, 2026 DOI: 10.65717/mnm.2026.26533 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 474 |
| Population | Nursing students at the Faculty of Nursing of a public university (354 female, 120 male) |
| Measures | Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Trait Anger/Anger Expression Inventory, Interpersonal Style Scale |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Nursing students reporting a mental disorder or poor friend relationships showed lower mindfulness, and anger and interpersonal styles differed by gender, mental disorder, academic year, and family and friend relationships. Mindfulness was negatively correlated with trait anger, negative anger expression, and negative interpersonal relationship styles. The authors propose that promoting mindfulness may improve anger expression and interpersonal relationships. |
Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to examine nursing students’ mindfulness, anger, interpersonal relationship styles, and the factors related to these variables.
Method: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive, and correlational study. It was conducted with 474 students (354 female; 120 male) enrolled in the Faculty of Nursing at a public university. Data were collected using a personal information form, the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, the Trait Anger/Anger Expression Inventory, and the Interpersonal Style Scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation), and both parametric (Student’s t-test, one-way ANOVA) and nonparametric (Mann–Whitney U-test, Kruskal–Wallis) tests.
Results: The study found that nursing students who reported having a mental disorder and poor friend relationships had lower levels of mindfulness (P <.05). Anger and anger expression styles differed according to students’ gender, presence of mental disorder, and their relationships with family and friends (P < .05). In addition, interpersonal relationship styles varied by gender, academic year, and students’ friend relationships (P < .05). Correlational analyses revealed a negative relationship between mindfulness and trait anger, negative anger expression, and negative interpersonal relationship styles (P < .05).
Conclusion: Promoting mindfulness among nursing students is believed to have positive effects on anger expression and interpersonal relationships.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Experienced meditators and nonmeditating comparison groups | 2008 | Cross-sectional study | |
| Neural Correlates of Dispositional Mindfulness During Affect Labeling Adult participants | 2007 | Observational cross-sectional | n = 27 |
| Assessing mindfulness in children and adolescents: Development and validation of the Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure (CAMM). School-aged children and adolescents | 2011 | Cross-sectional validation study | n = 1,413 |
| Mindfulness and self-compassion as predictors of psychological wellbeing in long-term meditators and matched nonmeditators Experienced meditators and demographically matched nonmeditators | 2012 | Cross-sectional study | n = 152 |
| Mechanisms of Action in the Inverse Relationship Between Mindfulness and Psychological Distress Undergraduates | 2008 | Cross-sectional, correlational |